Not long ago, I started subscribing to Long-Haul magazine. At its best, the mag showcases real stories about work, exploitation, and organizing from the perspective of workers themselves.
In a recent issue, I felt a strong connection to a discussion of restaurant work. For anyone who’s never done restaurant work, I suspect it’s a bit of a mystery just why people do it. It’s tough work in a grueling, highly exploitative industry, even in comparison to other working-class jobs. Even I struggle to explain it, though I’ve been a restaurant worker.
On Restaurant Work
Here’s how one worker put it:
I do really genuinely love this. In a post-scarcity society, I would go to a different person’s house every night and cook them dinner for free…We’ve been working out of charity for so long because this is one of the few American jobs where you have access to some type of fulfillment, where you can make something with your hands and put it in somebody else’s hands, and it’s nice.
This says a lot about the appeal. For a working-class person, there are few jobs out there as obviously relatable as restaurant work. We all eat. And we all appreciate it when a person puts their own spin on a meal – a bit of personality or just something we wouldn’t do at home.
And, yes, restaurant workers build genuine connections with customers. Not to mention the friendships – even communities – we build with our co-workers. These connections make it more difficult to leave the industry, even in the face of extreme exploitation and other job options that pay just as well.
When I think back to my restaurant days, I remember the sheer human drama of it. The drama included both joys with co-workers and epic bickering and fighting. But it also included the time we spent making someone smile with a delightful dish or bite of food.
Many of us would love a world that allowed us to spend our time – and make a real living – taking care of people’s basic needs. Especially if we had enough autonomy to do it our way.
Leave a Reply